1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a separated-panel structure preferably applied to a vehicle body.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a lamp-housing recess is formed on the rear part of a vehicle body and accommodates a rear combination lamp.
An outer panel that forms the outer shape of a vehicle body is normally made of a sheet metal panel. When a lamp housing is formed by pressing such a sheet metal panel, the sheet metal panel needs to be separated into a number of sheets because of the design aspect of the lamp and the processing requirement of the lamp housing.
In this case, junctions of separated panels are joined by spot welding and are sealed, so that a lamp housing is formed.
Within the art, a conventional separated-panel structure made of sheet metal is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent No. 2708267.
The above-mentioned separated-panel structure requires to be made watertight by using sealant coating. There is however a possibility that insufficient application of a sealant to the joints does not ensure adequate sealing.
With the foregoing problems in view, the object of the present invention is to provide a separated-panel structure of a vehicle with the intention of improving forming characteristics and additionally sealing properties.